Wednesday, February 23, 2011

It is with great relief and humble excitemtent that I received today in the mail a letter from VSAC, the main college lender in Vermont. I started my college loan repayments in December of 2001, and thanks to focused repayment and a new plan that my beloved, Lena, came up with a few years ago, I am now student loan dept free!

We were able to pay off the loan well before we were scheduled to (in under ten years, I might add), and I praise God for his providing for my education and also the repayment thereof.

Monday, February 21, 2011

This was a great meet in Framingham, MA. I swam with the the Bennington Masters in the morning, an 1800 yard workout, then drove the 2 hours to Framingham with my son Preston for the afternoon meet. I ran into Jim from Cape Cod, and while in the stands a guy asked me which Marauders I was from. After a short talk, we realized that I used to coach Matt when he was 10 years old and living the Bennington area! How cool is
that?

The meet went quickly, and Matt swam the push-pull race with me, in which he grabbed my ankles and kicked as I pulled the first length, then we traded spots on the way back. We had the winning time and got ribbons and some treats.

My results are below - it felt good to get below one minute in the 100yard Backstroke, which was my goal for the day. The two freestyle events felt really quick, too - overall a great time, and it was nice to be able to drive home that evening and avoid paying any hotel charges. I plan to head back again next year to this competitive but fun meet..

Friday, February 04, 2011

After two years of actively getting back into the pool, I have decided to buy some more equipment to help with my training. I picked up a pair of pull buoys since the pair I use at the Rec Center are often taken, and I also bought some more tubing to replace my worn out ones for my hand paddles.

I also made some apparel purchases as well. I had finally given up on the old Speedo Bikini trunks when I started back and moved to the square-leg style suits. My trusty green mesh have seen me through many laps and still has held on to its color, but I made the splash to a pair of jammers (think bicycle shorts for swimmers). Actually two pairs. The main one that I will be using is made by Dolphin and has a special chlorine blocking material to help it hold up to the chemicals I jump into three to four times weekly. I also picked up a suit by Speedo that will be used for competitions - not a tech suit but also not made from polyester like the Dolphin.

The coolest thing that I got was the pair of goggles below. I have two pairs that work fine, but since I do not have my glasses on in the water I am practically blind! I am always asking for the workout details or what time on the clock we need to leave for the next set. I have tossed the idea around of getting a pair from the local glasses shop, but the cost is over $100 for individualized glasses. It just so happened that I came across these need specs from Kiefer that allow me to see again! They cost under $20, and you have to get the same strength on both sides - although me left eye is a bit worse than my right, the -4.5 diopter pair allows me to see again in the water! I can now look at the workout board for the next set without disturbing my lane mates, and stun them by leaving on the correct intervals!

The one downside that I am getting used to is the fact that I see a little too well when I approach the wall for flip turns. The last 2-3 yards get blurry so I have been working to time my turns better. I am still deciding if I will use the optical goggles in meets or just for practices. I used the "mint madness" goggles my twiny Jillsey gifted to me a few years ago - I will try out the possibilities when I swim again in the middle of February. Other than that, I can now mean it when I say I will see you at the pool soon!

Don't Be Like Mike

Thankful that God has granted me a second chance (quite a few, actually) through my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I love the Lord, my family, and enjoy endless laps of swimming and circles on a motorcycle. Follow Jesus.